Giving Up on Your Business? Follow These Tips to Keep Going

Entrepreneurship is not easy, and some days it’s just downright exhausting. As a digital marketing agency in Miami dealing with small businesses and entrepreneurs, we know you  have endless things to do on your list!

That’s why only 7% of the general population report feelings of burnout, but 50% of entrepreneurs struggle with it.  

The thing about burnout is that it can affect your work performance and eventually lead to a loss of passion for entrepreneurship.  

Don’t let burnout make you quit your life’s work. Here’s what you can do to overcome it.

Why Is It Important to Stop Burnout?

Burnout is real and so is its impact on your mental and physical health.  

It’s associated with feelings of depression, depersonalization, a sense of ineffectiveness, higher stress, susceptibility to illness, and a higher risk of heart disease.  

These effects intensify with time and eventually begin to affect your work performance and life.  

Fortunately, burnout is a condition you can fully recover from even while working. Acknowledging burnout early and stopping before it’s too late can ensure that you will never lose your passion for entrepreneurship.

How to Identify Entrepreneurial Burnout Early On

Everybody feels stress, anxiety, or even dread sometimes. So how do you know when what you’re feeling is just a normal part of being a business owner and when it’s an early sign of burnout?  

Here are some signs to look out for to catch entrepreneurial burnout at its early stages:

• You always dread going to work – Everyone dreads going to work at some point in their careers. It might be because they don’t want to deal with the negative consequences of a bad decision, or they want to avoid an awful client. But if you hate the thought of going to work constantly, it's a sign of developing burnout.  

• You’re exhausted – You know you’re experiencing burnout if you’re physically and mentally tired no matter how many hours of sleep you get or how many vacations you take. You no longer have the energy to do what you used to love doing.
• You’re no longer the person you used to be – Are other people telling you that your mood and personality have changed? It’s hard to notice shifts in your personality but if people are telling you that you’re more irritable and angrier than you used to be, that’s another sign that you’re experiencing burnout.  
• It’s taking a toll on your health – As burnout develops, you'll begin to get headaches more frequently, struggle to get enough sleep, and your immune system will weaken. If you catch colds and other illnesses quickly, it’s probably because you’re experiencing burnout.  

Different Ways Busy Entrepreneurs Can Overcome Burnout (Even While Working)

1. Learn to Let Go

Your business is your baby, we get that. That’s why we don’t blame you if you want to control everything you can to make sure your business thrives. But in your relentless pursuit of perfection, you might not realize that you’re pushing yourself too far.  

Based on our experience as a digital marketing agency in Miami that started as a small business, one of the things you can do to prevent burnout is to let go of things you can’t control or shouldn’t be working on.  

Be at peace with the fact that there’s only so much you can do.  

That’s why you should learn how to:

• Automate tasks

• Train people to delegate jobs you don’t have to do yourself
• Trust your employees

When you do this, you have more time for yourself and can focus on things that can’t be automated.  

There are lots of tasks you can automate or delegate:

• Scheduling appointments.

• Sorting and responding to emails.
• Managing and posting on social media.  
• Making reports.
• Managing company relationships and interaction with clients and prospects.
• Gathering customer feedback through website surveys and questionnaires.  

• Project management and documentation.  
• Hiring a digital marketing agency in Miami to handle the marketing aspect of your business.  
• Setting up automatic payments.
• Customer support.  

2. Define Your Working Hours and Non-Working Hours

Make sure that you set a time of when you will be working and when you won't. For example, if you set a schedule to work from 9 am to 5 pm, follow through.  

The moment the clock hits 5, close your computer and stop working, even during busy times.  

It’s important to set boundaries because if you don’t, you literally will be working late into the night all the time. Let’s be honest, the job of an entrepreneur or small business owner never stops.  

There’s always something new for you to do.  

Working late affects your sleep and leaves you exhausted. That means you’re not as productive as you’d like to be, so you end up working longer, and before you know it, you’re caught in a toxic cycle of stress.  

If you are already caught in a loop, it's not too late to get out of it and start a healthier routine.  

Start by being firm with your working and non-working times. You need your downtime to keep you sane and to keep yourself productive.  

3. Join Social Gatherings to Relax

A lot of entrepreneurs join events or social gatherings to network. It’s as if there’s this social pressure to be constantly productive and hustling 24/7, even in a non-working environment.  

The problem, however, is that as time goes by, these parties begin to turn into another exhausting corporate activity that drains you of energy. In turn, you begin to lose interest in them.  

While there are situations that require you to hustle at a supposed-to-be “social gathering”, this shouldn’t be a constant thing. Learn to determine which events are for fun and which ones are great opportunities to network and promote your business.

Sometimes, the best way to win customers or clients is to be your brand. By being sociable, learning how to have a great time at a social gathering, and knowing when to give expert advice, you’ll win people over naturally without even trying.  

If you’ve gotten to the point of being sick and tired of parties, do something new such as playing golf, tennis, going on hikes, and enjoying live music with colleagues.  

4. Get Enough Sleep

Sleep enhances your learning and problem-solving skills, which are crucial to being productive in the workplace.

When you’re fully rested from a good night’s sleep, you experience the following:

• You wake up feeling refreshed and energized.
• You have more energy to tackle the challenges of the day.  
• Your brain functions better so you can make better decisions.
• You’re more mentally capable of solving problems at work.  

• You’re more present in conversations.  
• You’re healthier because good sleep can boost your immune system.  

When you’re sleep-deprived, the absolute opposite happens:

• You feel tired, irritable, and struggle to think clearly.
• You’re less alert and respond slower.  

• You can’t concentrate and have difficulties doing your job.  
• You’re more likely to get involved in a workplace accident.  

Sleep doesn’t come easy for those who have a lot to think about i.e., entrepreneurs and small business owners like you. So, what can you do to improve your sleeping habits? Here are some tips to help you:

• Set a specific sleep schedule and be strict in following it.  
• Avoid exercising when it’s close to your bedtime.  

• Avoid heavy meals and alcohol hours before your bedtime.  
• Avoid gadgets or TV an hour before your bedtime. Instead, do other relaxing activities, such as reading and listening to gentle music.  
• Create a good sleep environment by making it dark, eliminating noise, and cooling your room.  
• Do power naps during the day. These should last no longer than 10 to 20 minutes.  

If you still can't sleep, get out of bed and do some activities that relax your mind and body, such as reading or meditating.

Other Ways to Recover from Burnout

• Do activities you love. Do you have something you’ve always wanted to do or try but never got the chance to do so? Now is the time to reconnect with your old passions and explore new things.  
• Spend more time with your friends and family. Spend more time with your loved ones and be present in your conversations. This is a great way to fortify your relationships, have a great time with people you love, and overcome entrepreneurial burnout.
• Spend time with nature – There's something relaxing about being surrounded by trees, hearing the birds chirp, listening to the sound of water gushing down the river, or burying your toes in the sand. If you love the outdoors, consider spending time outside and being one with mother nature.  
• Take time to exercise – Exercise gives your brain more energy that boosts your mental output. If you don’t exercise, now is the best time to get started.  

• Go on a vacation – Take the time to relax and free your mind from stress by traveling and going on a vacation. You’ll come back refreshed and inspired to work harder!
• Learn to delegate – To lighten your load, hire a digital marketing agency in Miami to handle all aspects of marketing your business in front of the right crowd.  

Want to Keep Your Passion for Business Alive?

The key to preventing and overcoming burnout is to build a life around a healthier and more sustainable routine.  

At the end of the day, it’s all about balance. By knowing when to hustle and when to relax, learning how to automate and delegate tasks, accepting that you can't control everything, having fun, and reconnecting with your passions, you can live a life free of burnout.  

At Digital Resource, our team of digital marketing experts will work together to create a custom digital marketing strategy specific to your business and marketing goals.  

Looking for a trusted digital marketing agency in Miami that can deliver results consistently? We’re the best agency to call!

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